RealFreakinCigarReviews

Dan celebrates the end of the ex-wife financial horror story with an Arturo Fuente Opus X.

Opus X safely in its hermetically sealed tube

Arturo Fuente Opus X Petite Lancero

Initial Thoughts

I purchased this cigar to celebrate the end of a financial nightmare that involved my ex-wife and I.  Pricewise, I swallowed a little as I purchased it from the Thompson Cigar site  -- 3 stogies for $100.00.  Yes, it included a nifty picture book and a CD by Arturo Sandoval, but in the final analysis, what I'm really interested in is the cigar.  I'm reviewing the Petite Lancero.

Visibly, I notice a minor crack in the wrapper, but otherwise, a very pretty cigar.  The bands (two of them) border on being a work of art.

Smell test - a little sweet, some earthiness, and my wife acknowledges that it does not in fact smell like shit.  My meat eating, animal rights activist teen ager isn't around, so her opinion isn't included.

The Smoke

So, I've got the CD playing, I've got my 18 year aged single malt scotch, and I've got the cigar ready to fire up.  I use my punch cutter, with no issues , I toast the foot and light the cigar for my first puff.  WOW! Slightly sweet taste, with hints of a toasty nutty flavor.  Excellent complexity.  LOTS of billowy white smoke.

At the 1/3rd point, I notice a slight peppery taste -- nothing overpowering or anything like that, just a little "oomph" to let you know you're definitely smoking a medium bodied stogie.  Excellent complexity in the flavor.  Flawless draw.  I am noticing a slight (but noticable) unevenness in the burn, corresponding to the minor crack I observed in the wrapper.  I'm truly enjoying the cigar, and the combination of the scotch, CD and cigar is resulting in a near-religious experience on my part.

Hmmm... at the 2/3 point, the burn IS uneven, and I actually had to relight a portion of it.  Probably not a big deal to many, but for the price, I expected better.  I've smoked a number of cheaper cigars that burned absolutely flawlessly.  Flavor and complexity continue to be excellent, and the pepperiness that I observed earlier is gone.

Sadly I'm done with the cigar.  Did I enjoy the experience?  Absolutely.  Would I purchase a box of them?  No, even if I had unlimited humidor cash -- it was a decent cigar, but certainly not worth the orgasmic accolades that some place on this stick.

The Rating